Chapter 15 - The Billionaire's Proposition
The air in the interrogation room grew suffocatingly thin.
James surged forward, slamming his hands onto the metal table, his voice shaking with a rage I had never seen before. "You son of a bitch! You orchestrated the whole thing! You used Marcus as a decoy, you trapped my firm in debt, and you manipulated Elena into carrying your child!"
Julian didn't even flinch. He adjusted his cuffs smoothly, stepping further into the room while his two private guards positioned themselves squarely in front of the exit door, blocking any escape.
"Let's not use crude language, James," Julian replied, his voice dripping with condescending calm. He pulled out the metal chair opposite us and sat down, resting his elbows on the table. "Elena was a troubled young woman who made a poor choice in companions. When she came to me carrying my child, she tried to extort me for millions under the threat of a public scandal. So, I let her run. I let her hide behind Marcus, and I let her foolishly believe she could give my child away to a suburban couple playing house."
Julian's cold, calculated gaze shifted slowly from James to me, locking onto my eyes with chilling intensity.
"You want a daughter so badly, Sarah? I admire that. It's a noble maternal instinct," Julian continued, leaning forward. "But a billionaire doesn't lose his bloodline to a couple of middle-class schoolteachers living on a salvaged mortgage. Here is my proposition: you sign an immediate, voluntary relinquishment of all parental claims tonight. In exchange, I wipe out every cent of debt your architectural firm owes, I pay off your home mortgage in full, and I set up a million-dollar trust fund for your three boys to ensure they go to any ivy league university they want."
I stared at him, my heart pounding in my chest like a trapped bird. "And if we say no?"
Julian’s smile didn't reach his eyes. It vanished completely, replaced by a dark, predatory flatness.
"If you say no, Sarah, by 9:00 AM tomorrow morning, your husband's firm will face immediate corporate liquidation for fraudulent escrow practices. Your home will be foreclosed on by the bank within forty-eight hours. And Child Protective Services will be at your front door to remove your three boys from your custody under charges of severe financial instability and child endangerment."
May you like
He stood up slowly, smoothing down his cashmere coat.
"Think about it overnight," Julian said softly, walking toward the door. "You have until sunrise to decide whether you want to save your family... or lose everything."
